Justice Minister Nela Kuburović met today with the Head of the Council of Europe Office in Belgrade Tobias Flessenkemper to discuss cooperation between the Republic of Serbia and the Council of Europe.

Minister Kuburović said that Serbia cooperated intensively with all Council of Europe bodies underlining in particular the cooperation with the European Commission for the Efficiency of the Judiciary (CEPEJ), which resulted in significant improvement of statistical reporting by courts.

The Minister thanked Flessenkemper for the support and assistance received from the Council of Europe with regard to constitutional reform which was in progress. Specifically, in November 2018 the Government of Serbia proposed to the National Assembly to launch the constitutional amendment procedure concerning the status of judges and prosecutors.

The Minister expressed her hope that MPs would accept the proposal during the spring session so that the parliamentary Committee on Constitutional and Legislative Issues could organise public debates, after which the final draft would be drawn up allowing MPs to express their opinions about it.

“If the proposal is accepted by a two-thirds majority, it must be confirmed in a referendum”, she explained.

Kuburović also pointed out that the Ministry of Justice had formed working groups tasked with drafting a judiciary package to align with future constitutional changes, adding that it would certainly be necessary to work with the Venice Commission again, the recommendations of which would be taken into account.

Flessenkemper welcomed constitutional reform efforts by the Ministry of Justice, as well as those at revising the Chapter 23 Action Plan, adding that the Council of Europe monitors all reforms in Serbia, in particular those in the justice sector.